Man in the Mask Gyökeres Quiets ‘Invisible’ Taunts to Stamp His Authority at the Gunners

In the event that Viktor Gyökeres goes on to become the striker that every Arsenal supporters have been praying for, then possibly they will look back on this night as the point his destiny turned around. In keeping with the timeless attacker’s creed, it makes no difference how they go in.

After a run of nine matches for Arsenal and Sweden without a goal and expectations rising on the man brought in for a substantial sum in the summer, a tremendous feeling of ease washed over the Emirates Stadium when Gyökeres tapped in from close range via a ricochet off David Hancko during a electrifying second half when Mikel Arteta’s side showed again that they are here to compete this season.

Stunning Reversal in Form

Within moments and to the joy of the home faithful, his face-covering routine borrowed from the character Bane in Batman, whose catchphrase is “nobody cared until I put on the mask,” was showcased again after bundling over from Gabriel Magalhães’s header following a Declan Rice corner to complete the rout against Atlético Madrid. Down on the touchline, Arteta punched the air and motioned emphatically in the direction of his new centre forward, of whom he has spent the past two weeks insisting the best was yet to come.

“This is football, and we can’t expect a player to switch environments and have him do the same thing instantly,” the Arsenal manager remarked in a conversation with the Spanish newspaper Marca prior to the match. “Situations are not the same. All players in the world need one thing: their psychological state to be at its best. I advised Viktor in our first meeting that the striker I sought for Arsenal was someone who could stay resilient when they faced a goal drought without scoring. If not, you’re not suited at this tier. That’s why I have a great belief in him.”

Youthful Struggles

When he was just 14 playing for IFK Aspudden-Tellus, who are located in Stockholm’s southside districts, that Gyökeres first recognized he would have to develop a thick skin to succeed in his selected career. Rebuked after a poor performance by a coach who said he didn’t have the mentality to excel in professional play, he was eventually transformed from a flank attacker into a striker after signing for Brommapojkarna two years later. “Those words lingered and I still remember it today,” he said in a recent interview.

Challenging Spell

Goal-shy since the win over Nottingham Forest here back on 13 September, this has been one of the hardest times of his professional life. Gyökeres was heavily criticised after Sweden were beaten by Kosovo and Switzerland in World Cup qualifiers in the last two weeks, with one newspaper describing his performance against the latter as “invisible.”

He achieved an astounding 54 goals in 52 appearances in all tournaments for Sporting last season, so the problem is obviously not his scoring ability. In line with the coach’s repeated comments, his all‑round play has added a new layer in attack, even if the chances have not fallen his way.

Key Moments

This was clearly apparent during the opening period of this top-level clash between two teams that had originally looked evenly matched. There was a sense that Gyökeres was pressing too much to make an impact as he ran aggressively like a force of nature during the beginning phase. An Eberechi Eze shot that bounced on to the bar inside the first few moments was set up by some clever dribbling on the edge of the Atlético area that skillfully evaded from his defender, José María Giménez.

The defender has the aura of a man who could provoke conflict anywhere but is highly seasoned at this level compared with Gyökeres, who is participating in just his second Champions League campaign after scoring a hat-trick for Sporting against Manchester City last season that likely played a key role to persuading Arteta to secure the signing.

Constant Hustle

Nevertheless having attracted criticism that he was overweight after missing most of pre-season in Portugal, Arsenal’s much more svelte-looking striker pursued each opportunity as if his career hung in the balance. Giménez was drawn into conceding a booking when Gyökeres collided with him on the edge of the Atlético area having simply held his position. Gabriel Martinelli saw his goal ruled out for offside after finishing Bukayo Saka’s cross and it only came in the second half that the Swede had his opening chance.

A exquisite touch from Martinelli provided a golden opportunity, only for Jan Oblak to promptly save an unconvincing toe-poke towards goal. Then it must have appeared that the breakthrough would never come. But the floodgates opened when Gabriel nodded in Rice’s free-kick and Gyökeres was perfectly positioned to benefit as the forward with the disguise announced his presence. “With any luck this is the start of some beautiful sequences,” said a delighted Arteta.